


When The Sun Sets

by GoneRampant, Shipperoftrashyships



Category: RWBY
Genre: Alternate Universe - Medieval, F/M, Fantasy setting, Supernatural Elements, Vampire Hunter, Vampires, Violence
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-06-20
Updated: 2018-06-20
Packaged: 2019-05-26 01:40:21
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,860
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14989988
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GoneRampant/pseuds/GoneRampant, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Shipperoftrashyships/pseuds/Shipperoftrashyships
Summary: Few blights have ravaged our world like the threat of the vampires; soulless monsters that drain the blood from innocent maidens and young babes. It is the duty of hunters like the intrepid Yang Xiao Long to find these beasts and purge them like the disease they are.





	When The Sun Sets

**Author's Note:**

  * For [DesdemonaWrath](https://archiveofourown.org/users/DesdemonaWrath/gifts).



> Heyyyy, so this is a gift fic for my friend Indy!!! <3 Happy birthday!!!! hope you have a great day!!! This was also co-written by my good friend Gone Rampant too and beta-read by SuperSecretAgentQrow, thx guys <3 So this is a GnG vampire AU, its set in a Medieval/fantasy style Remnant, so no guns or semblances etc, anyway hope you all enjoy it!!

It was a deathly silent night as Yang walked through the Emerald Forest, with only the crunching of snow beneath her boots echoing around her. The moonlight shone through the foliage, illuminating the ground in a scene of pearly white. It would be serene if it weren’t for the fact that she was on a hunt for vile creatures of the night, the feared vampires she had orders from Guildmaster Ozpin to slay. 

 

She looked ahead and spotted what she assumed to be a campfire in the distance when something in the corner of her eye caught her attention. There was a large splatter of blood in the snow, twisting the pristine white forest floor into a dark crimson red. From there, her keen eyes noticed a small trail leading to an area hidden behind a family of oaks. She entered the clearing and wasn’t surprised at what she found.

 

Lying against a tree was the lifeless body of a man, his gear giving Yang the impression that he was a bandit of sorts, possibly from the camp in the distance. She knelt down next to the body, her eyes instantly drawn to the dead man’s throat that was ripped open at the side. What she found odd was that the bandit's sword was still sheathed, almost as if he hadn’t put up a fight.

 

“Was he mesmerised?” she whispered to herself.

 

If the bandit had been mesmerised it made Yang’s job a whole lot tougher. She knew from her studies that only extremely old and powerful vampires were able to mesmerise a human. That meant she’d have to wait for this particular vampire to let its guard down, which made frustrated her more than it terrified her. Her preferred method to dispatch the fiendish creatures of the night was to fight them straight up, but that was really only effective against the lesser vampires of Remnant.

 

She decided her next course of action would be to head towards the campfire she had spotted before, her gut instinct telling her that’s where her new target would most likely be heading next. After a short trek, the camp was within her eyesight a number of fur tents arranged around a large campfire.

 

Suddenly Yang heard shouting, someone screaming out in pain as the battle cries of the bandit group filled the air. She stalked a little closer to get a better look at the commotion and once she was close enough, she shuffled against a nearby rock as cover.

 

Yang knew she was a capable vampire slayer, having killed dozens of them in her successful career, yet what she saw unfold before her was downright horrifying. A lone man - no, a lone vampire was carving through the humans like a hot knife cutting through butter. He blinked past their defenses, biting down on their necks and draining the life from them in seconds, or he’d use his claw-like fingernails to slice through their skin like water. 

 

The slaughter was over as quickly as it began, with the elder vampire standing alone in the middle of the camp. The creature was surrounded by a dozen dead bodies with blood splattered all over the ground. Yang watched the creature of the night in disgust as it licked the blood from its fiendish hands, clear in her conviction that she needed to remove this evil creature from the planet before it attacked a defenseless village and slaughtered hapless innocents.

 

She came up with a plan to dispatch the creature on the spot, deciding she would follow it back to its hideout as the sun began to rise. She’d employ the tried-and-tested techniques of The Dawnguard vampire hunters to remain concealed, slowing her heartbeat and blending with her surroundings as she tailed the monster.

 

Once she was ready, she scanned for the vampire and found him walking away from the scene of carnage briskly, obviously aware of the quickly-descending shattered moon. Using the underbrush to hide, Yang followed it for some time until the elder vampire entered a large cave. Setting up against a well-placed slab of stone she waited for the sun to rise, knowing it would be the best time to strike and kill the bloodsucker. As the sun rose, she prepared her silver-bladed axe and strode into the dark cavern entrance. 

 

The interior was cool and damp, droplets of moisture echoing from their impact in the confined space. Glancing around to observe her surroundings, Yang could see a small flicker of light from much deeper in the cave. Crouching low and prowling as quietly as she could, she made her way further and further until she came across a large open area. There, countless candles lay on the ground in an intentional pattern, giving the area a light orange hue. There was a table littered with old scrolls and a map, as well as a bed in the corner, and sleeping peacefully in his lair Yang’s target lay.

 

She wasn’t about to waste this chance, silently creeping up to the sleeping vampire and raising her silver blade high in the air to strike with her weapon and remove its head from its body with one clean cut. With a deep breath, she swung her axe down hard - 

 

Only to miss as the vampire vanished into a black mist the moment her weapon came into contact with the illusion.

 

“Come on Blondie, that any way to treat a host? I’m hurt,” A silken voice said from behind her. 

 

Spinning around, she saw the vampire from the bed perched on the other side of the cave, eyeing her less like a next meal and more like a humorous plaything. He - no,  _ it, _ definitely not he - wore a smirk that sent a foreign chill down her spine. How had it moved over there so quickly? Just how powerful  _ was _ this particular vampire?

 

With a growl, Yang charged the vampire again and swung her axe in an obvious attempt to decapitate it. Once again the vampire disappeared into a black mist and reappeared behind her. She huffed in frustration, getting annoyed at this vampire for thwarting her attacks.

 

“Stay still damn it!” she snarled angrily.

 

“Look, just calm down for a minute,” the fiend tried to persuade her to lower her defenses and take advantage of her hesitation. She would give it no such satisfaction.

 

Her response was to attack it again, and once again it’s easy answer was to turn into mist again. Each failed attack only fueled her ever-increasing rage, but the angrier she got the sloppier her attacks became.

 

“Just - just - DIE!” she yelled, swinging her axe in a vicious arc that would forever maim a human adversary.

 

“Wait, I just want to talk to yo-” the vampire said, only to be interrupted by her axe burying itself into its shoulder. 

 

The sound of flesh sizzling against the silver axe made her smirk. Yang made to pull the weapon from the vampire’s torso and finish the job but was stopped before she could remove the axe. The vampire had gripped her forearm with incredible strength and when she looked at the vampire’s face, she found it wearing an annoyed expression rather than one of blind rage.

 

“That. Hurt,” it said slowly before it used its incredible strength to turn Yang on her heel. She tried her best to free herself from it's supernatural grasp, sure as hell that there was no way she was going to let this bloodsucker drain the life from her. Nevertheless, she braced herself for the painful feeling of its fangs sinking into her neck, but found that it never came, instead Yang was hit in the back of the head before her world was suddenly covered in darkness.

\--------------------------------

When Yang woke up, she felt incredibly groggy and had a mind-splitting headache. She tried to rub the back of her head to soothe the pain but she found her hands were tied with an elegant knot. She let out a small groan as she tried to free herself from her bonds, her efforts proving fruitless but grabbing the attention of her captor.

 

“Ah, good, you’re awake,” the creature said from its seated position on the bed.

 

“I’ll kill you, you blood-sucking fiend!” she shouted in reply.

 

“My, my, you’re a violent one and please, enough with the name-calling, you’re hurting my feelings,” it said, placing a mock hand on its chest pretending to be hurt.

 

“You vampires don’t have feelings,” Yang said through gritted teeth, looking away from him.

 

He paused at that. “Well that’s  _ partially _ true,” he admitted. “Feral vampires do indeed lose touch with their more human side, whereas a vampire such as myself can still feel every emotion you can.” Its response caused her to frown. She was mad enough at getting caught and being defeated but being stuck listening to him ramble basic facts about the enemy was downright humiliating. She was better than this.

 

“Why don’t you just hurry up and end this,” she said, deflating slightly.

 

“Look, as I said before, I just want to talk,” it told her, crouching down to be eye level with her.

 

“Fine then, talk.” Not like she had any choice  _ but  _ to listen to him blabber on and on.

 

“See, that wasn’t so hard was it, now to whom am I speaking with?”

 

“Name’s Yang,” she informed him reluctantly, only now getting a good look at his face. If he were a human and were its smirk less smug and condescending, the haunting grey eyes and captivating jawline would’ve made it more than a little handsome.

 

“Well, I would say it’s a pleasure to meet you, but you  _ did  _ just try to kill me,” it said with shrug of its shoulders.

 

“Don’t act like you’re all innocent! You slaughtered those humans back at the camp. You and your kind prey on innocent people and steal away their life. You’re nothing but a monster of the night,” she spat angrily. 

 

“Oh I’m a monster now, am I?” it said, angry frustration making its voice all the more intimidating. “That camp back there was a bandit camp, sweetheart. I’ve been watching them for some time now, and do you know how many villages they’ve raided? How many innocents they’ve killed for fun? How many men, women and children they’ve sold into slavery? And you dare call  _ me  _ a monster? I may kill here and there, but I kill to survive. They just killed and pillaged for their own sadistic desires and to line their pockets,” the vampire seethed.

 

“I...” was all she managed to say before it waved its hand dismissively.

 

“It doesn’t matter, we could be here arguing morality and all that crap until the sun burnt out, but I kept you alive because -” He stopped, looked away for a second, “because I need your help,” he mumbled through clenched teeth.

 

“Excuse me?” Did she hear that right?

 

“Look, you’re a vampire hunter, aren’t you?” the slightly-exasperated creature asked her.

 

“Well yes but, why would a vampire need a vampire hunter’s help?” She leaned forward instinctively, her curiosity getting the better of her.

 

“Ever heard of a Marcus Black? If you haven’t, you’ve probably seen his handiwork. He’s purged entire villages and put them to the torch to get at the life-blood of the people within. A real scum of the earth.” It paused. “And...he might be my father.” 

 

“Your father?” 

 

“He had me before he was turned, vampires are sterile. When he was turned, I was made a vampire alongside him as a… package deal.” Its lips twitched at that. “Either way, the mad bastard’s my father, and he’s really into these ancient vampire spells. He wants more than what blood already offers us, he wants to be known across the world as the vampire who finally conquered the sun.” It blew a tuft of hair out of its face, pretty clear on how it stood towards all that.

 

“How would he even do that?” 

 

“Well, my father in his infinite wisdom somehow formed a plan to block out the sun, and I figured a vampire hunter would like to prevent that from happening,” it informed her, satisfied with the wretched expression crossing her face. If a vampire was to block out the sun, who knew what kind of chaos it would cause?

 

“Wait, why would you want to prevent that? Wouldn’t blocking out the sun make your life easier?” she asked. Almost everything about this guy screamed of contrarianism and her head was spinning from more than the headache.

 

“It would for a time, but I don’t feel like inviting the whole world to join your cause and hunt my kind into extinction,” it explained as it pulled out a knife that tripled her heart rate. “Relax, I’m not going to kill you. Yet,” it said with a wink as it cut the rope that bound her hands together. “Come on, I’m just trying to be a little hospitable.” He paused for a second. “Oh, and the name’s Mercury. Figured I’d share mine since you told me yours.” There was that damned smirk again. 

 

Yang rubbed her wrists once the rope was cut. “Why me? Why not find a master hunter like Ozpin to give this information to, if it’s even true?” 

 

“Trust me, once that old coot Ozpin sees my proof he’ll believe everything I say.” Mercury’s eyes flicked over to the corner of his dwelling, where a satchel had been tucked away neatly. Yang’s eyes followed Mercury’s, roving around the cavern in the process. Something about the whole thing was off-putting, from the candles providing a soft orange glow around the room, to the various furs and drapes taken from bandit camps adding color and comfort to the drab walls, to even a chest with spare clothes lazily hanging around it. Finally it settled in, the realization almost making her laugh.

 

This vampire was  _ lonely. _ That was a mental image that she couldn’t help suppress. 

 

Mercury caught her looking, shrugging when she raised an eyebrow at him. “Live a thousand years and you start to yearn for basic comforts. Besides, only so much time I can spend looking at boring caves.” 

 

“A vampire with a sense for interior decoration,” Yang said, deadpan. “Now I really have seen everything.” 

 

“Trust me, there’s plenty of things you haven’t seen about me.”

 

“Getting back on topic,” Yang eventually said, forcing herself to remember that he was a remorseless killer, “what’s your plan exactly?” 

 

“Find the proof of my father’s plans, show Ozpin and hopefully get some help in taking my old man down,” Mercury told her.

 

“Why do you need my guild’s help anyways? Can’t you just go to your father and remove his head yourself?” 

 

“I’m strong, but I’m not stupid. I know I’ll need help when taking down my father and who better to help than a guild that hunts vampires for a living?”

 

Yang nodded, conceding the point. “So what’s this proof you need?” 

 

“My father’s plan involves an ancient prophecy, one of the ten prophecies that’s actually real and will happen - one that involves an ancient book called the Tome of Grimm. He’ll need to barter with a demon whose name would drive you mad if you heard it, let alone spoke it, so we’ll call her Cinder to preserve your psyche. If he gets the book, he’ll be able to begin making more extensive preparations for his ritual, so my plan is to try and get it first. Problem is? Cinder’s a bit of a pyromaniac, so she’d likely give my father the book if he promised enough tributes in fire. Getting her to give us the book first will be… challenging.” 

 

“Ozpin will know what to do, and if he doesn’t, he’ll know someone who’ll know how to get that book.” Yang almost surprised herself by how sure she sounded, and then realized a second later that she had just signed up on a mission that would involve working with a vampire, consorting with a demon and stopping a plan to blot out the sun. Not exactly the average contract, but who was she to turn down a chance to do good? “We should probably head out soon.”

 

Mercury stared flatly at her for a moment before pointing behind Yang to the rapidly-brightening day as the sun rose in the sky. 

 

“Right. Forgot about the whole sun thing. Fine, we’ll take off at sundown.” 

 

“Lovely,” Mercury said. He brought his hand up to his mouth and yawned obnoxiously. “Now if you don’t mind, I was in the middle of a nap before you showed up. Can I get back to that?” 

 

Yang shrugged and Mercury, without further ado, fell back onto the bed and promptly passed out. One could almost say he was dead to the world. Yang chuckled at that, retrieving her axe and sitting down as far as she could from the bloodsucking sleeping beauty. No matter what happened from here on out, Yang was sure this was gonna be a story she’d tell her grandkids one day. As long as she lived long enough to tell it.

**Author's Note:**

> So hope you liked it, there will be more chapters to this I can promise you!! I don't know when I'll post them but subscribe to the fic if you don't want to miss out! If you liked what you read, please leave a comment and Kudos, really helps me get inspired to write!


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